[originaltext] A man who tells a story does not always try to base it on fac

A man who tells a story does not always try to base it on facts. He may not believe that facts are necessary in a stow. He may want to make people laugh or make them cry; he may even want to make them think.
    A good story is often told in many different languages. It may live through many centuries, and millions of people may enjoy telling it or listening to it. It is not the facts of a story which make it live. The value or a story does not come from its facts, but from human interest or the way it is told.
    An English novelist wrote a new book, and a month after it was published his publisher told him that 1,000 copies had already been sold. That evening the novelist had a meal with his publisher and an American friend. They talked about the new book, and the novelist told the American that 10,000 copies had been sold. Later the publisher asked him why he had not told the exact number. "To an American," said the novelist, "a thousand is nothing. I multiplied the number by ten to give him a true idea of success of the book." This novelist was famous not for his accuracy but for his novels; he knew how to tell stories. His best novel will probably live for a long time.